IRAQ SANCTIONS MONITOR Number 201
Thursday, February 1, 2001
The Monitor is produced each weekday by the Mariam Appeal.
www.mariamappeal.com
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Syria, Iraq free trade accord
>From AME, February 1st, 2001
Syrian and Iraqi officials yesterday inked a free trade agreement
in an effort to improve relations which have been strained for two
decades. The deal is expected to boost cross border trade from
USD500m to USD1bn this year. Syria said that the trade fell
within the limits imposed by UN sanctions on Iraq.
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Kuwaiti MP says his country not against Jordan-Iraq
rapprochement
February 1st, 2001
Text of report in English by Kuwaiti news agency Kuna web site
Amman, 31 January: The visiting Kuwaiti parliamentary
delegation here expressed in a press conference Wednesday
[31 January] night its appreciation for Jordan's understanding of
Kuwaiti concerns, particularly the recent Iraqi threats against
Kuwait's sovereignty.
Kuwaiti MP, Muhammad al-Saqr, said at the conference that
Jordanian officials take in full consideration the seriousness of
such issues as Kuwait's safe borders and the plight of Kuwaiti
POW's languishing in Iraqi jails. The delegation had met
earlier today with a number of high Jordanian officials including
HH the crown prince, Hamza Bin-al-Husayn.
Al-Saqr noted that any rapprochement between Iraq and Jordan
will not be at the expense of any other Arab country. He added
that Kuwait is in favour of close ties between any two or more
Arab states. Referring to Iraq's latest threats towards Kuwait, he
said such hostile behaviour does not serve the Arab cause but
adds, instead, to tension in the area. He made it clear, also that
Kuwait is not against lifting sanctions against the Iraqi people.
He stressed the total support Kuwait lends to the Palestinian
cause, including the intifada and continuing peace talks between
Israel and the Palestinians.
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Switzerland reopens embassy in Baghdad
BAGHDAD, Feb 1 (AFP) - Switzerland has reopened its
embassy in Baghdad which was closed a few days before the
start of the 1991 Gulf War, a Swiss diplomat said Thursday.
"The Swiss embassy in Baghdad has been reactivated after 10
years of closure by opening the liaison office," Kurt Reiniger,
diplomat charged with humanitarian affairs, told AFP.
"We arrived in Baghdad last Saturday for this purpose. Other
diplomats will be coming in the next few months for visa and
commercial affairs," said Reiniger, who is accompanied by one
other diplomat.
Switzerland never severed diplomatic relations with Baghdad
during the Gulf War and was not part of the US-led coalition that
defeated Iraqi forces following the 1991 invasion of Kuwait.
Local Iraqi employees were asked to ensure the upkeep of the
embassy building.
Bern said last November the reopening of its Baghdad
embassy was essential to ensure a presence in Iraq to better
represent its business interests in the country and also to raise
issues of human rights and regional stability.
Bern has provided four million Swiss francs (2.2 million dollars)
in humanitarian aid to Iraq through various organisations such
as the Red Cross and the World Food Programme.
Several Swiss firms are currently working in Iraq under the UN
oil-for-food programme, which provides for sales of oil to pay for
humanitarian supplies.
But the Swiss foreign ministry said these firms are "at a
disadvantage against competitors, notably European, many of
whom have active embassies in place" in Iraq.
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Kuwait's `puppet` PM should never have faced trial: lawyer
KUWAIT CITY, Jan 31 (AFP) - The head of a puppet government
formed after Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait should not have
faced trial in the emirate because he was a political refugee
under UN conventions, his Saudi lawyer argued Wednesday.
"My client Alaa Hussein Ali was granted political asylum in
Norway before returning to Kuwait in January 2000. His wife is
still enjoying political refugee status under UN conventions,"
Kateb al-Shemmari said in his closing arguments.
Shemmari also told the cassation court, Kuwait's highest court,
that Alaa Hussein Ali was sentenced to death by lower courts on
"wrong procedures and invalid testimonies".
He complained that both criminal and appeals courts
overlooked legitimate demands by the defence to hear
testimonies from a number of "important witnesses" who were
in a similar situation to Ali during the invasion.
Shemmari said the death sentence issued in absentia in 1993
was "null and void" because it was based on the testimonies of
the eight other members of Ali's puppet government.
Charges against the eight were dropped after their return to
Kuwait in March 1991, shortly after the emirate was liberated in
the Gulf War.
Ali continued to live in Iraq until 1997 before leaving to Norway,
from where he returned voluntarily to Kuwait expecting to be
pardoned.
Chief justice Abdullah al-Issa, heading the five-judge panel,
adjourned the court until March 13 to pass sentence.
Verdicts issued by Kuwait's highest court are final, but any
death sentence needs to be approved by the emir, Sheikh Jaber
al-Ahmad al-Sabah, who has the power to commute sentences.
Last May, a criminal court confirmed the death sentence
against Ali for treason, collaboration with the enemy, and
undermining Kuwait's security and sovereignty. And an appeals
court upheld the sentence in July.
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Iraqi minister says firing at US planes to continue, denies Iraq
has banned weapons
Excerpt from report by Lebanese newspaper Al-Safir web site on
31 January
Iraqi Foreign Minister Muhammad Sa'id al-Sahhaf has said that
Iraq's relations with Lebanon on the levels of trade, economy
and mutual interests were important. These relations developed,
though modestly, but it is a fine beginning, he said. He said
there were chances to develop these relations.
Al-Sahhaf was speaking at Beirut airport where he stopped over
for several hours at 1030 yesterday. He was on his way from
Damascus to Jakarta on a working visit to Indonesia via the
United Arab Emirates...
On the increased pressure on Iraq under US President George
W. Bush's administration, Al-Sahhaf said: They no longer can do
more than what they did without success.
He stressed that Iraq had no prohibited weapons or any
factories to produce such weapons. Therefore, he added, the
excuses that the United States offers to continue the attacks
against Iraq - namely that Iraq still produces chemical and
ballistic weapons - are untrue and bankrupt.
Al-Sahhaf said that there was no air embargo on Iraq. He
explained that Security Council Resolution 670 says that planes
heading for Iraq must be inspected so that the United Nations
will make sure they do not carry banned equipment, that is,
material that can be used to produce prohibited weapons.
He added: So there is no ban on planes, but inspection. But the
Americans, with their arrogance, aggressive practices and
pressure on and intimidation of governments, frightened some
governments into complying with the US demands, not the
Security Council resolutions. So the air embargo is imposed by
the Americans and it is a result of fear on the part of some
governments.
On a report in The Washington Post that the United States
warned Syria against continuing its cooperation with Iraq in
certain economic areas, Al-Sahhaf said: This is the talk of the
Jews and the Zionists. What is the difference between this talk
and the talk of any Israeli? This must be trampled on.
Asked how Baghdad sees the future of the region if Sharon wins
the Israeli elections, Al-Sahhaf said: No comment. We are not
interested in these people, and resistance against them should
continue.
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Weekend market pulls the crowds in book-starved Baghdad
BAGHDAD, Jan 31 (AFP) - Book-starved Baghdadis flock to
Al-Mutannabi Street in the Iraqi capital's old downtown for sales
each weekend that have become a
way of life under a decade of embargo.
"This shows the impact the embargo still has on intellectual life
in Iraq," said a regular customer at the sales on Friday, the
Muslim weekend.
Naim al-Shatri, a bookshop owner, said most of his customers
were "the nouveau rich looking for rare works to boost their
private libraries," while real book addicts were often the reluctant
sellers.
Historical and scientific works, a speciality of his business, are
the most sought after, the 65-year-old said.
Another shop owner, Mahdi Shadher, said his suppliers were
mostly "people who inherited family libraries which they dust off
and sacrifice either for the money or due to ignorance of their
real value".
One good thing, at least, is that "such books are passed on
from one family to another, which keeps them intact," he said.
But more and more intellectuals are having to part with their
treasures "just to make ends meet for their families, who have
been impoverished by the embargo," explained salesman Qais
Sami.
Literary works are in demand on Al-Mutannabi, a street named
after Iraq's most famous poet, whereas students from faculties
with sadly outdated library books are keen buyers of academic
works.
The prices are often exorbitant, sometimes as much as 30,000
dinars (19 dollars) or four times the average monthly wage of a
civil servant since the erosion of the currency under sanctions
imposed on Iraq for its 1990 invasion of Kuwait.
Abdul Mutaleb Mahmud, secretary general of the Iraqi writers'
union, said the embargo had "wreaked havoc on learning in Iraq,
a country which has been cut off for more than 10 years from
new developments".
Iraqi universities and research centres are the worst hit.
"But the situation is finally starting to improve," he said, referring
to book fairs which have been held with the help of fellow Arab
countries, as the isolation of Baghdad eases.
Writers' unions in Jordan, Syria, Tunisia, the United Arab
Emirates and the Palestinian territories have agreed to publish
the works of Iraqi authors and to provide their own new works to
Iraq, he said.
During an annual congress of the Arab writers' union held in
Baghdad, 6,000 books were on exhibition, and the Iraqi
government has launched a bid to restock university libraries
with scientific works.
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Kuwait opposes Arab moves for Iraq's re-entry into sports
KUWAIT CITY, Jan 31 (AFP) - Kuwait will oppose an Arab
decision to allow its former occupier Iraq to take part in sports
events in the region, the president of Kuwait's Olympic
committee said Wednesday.
"The decision of the Arab sports ministers council was a
mistake. That's why Kuwait has expressed reservations about
the decision," Sheikh Ahmad al-Fahad al-Sabah told Al-Rai
Al-Aam newspaper.
The council said Tuesday that it had decided to allow Iraq,
which was excluded from the 1992 and 1997 Arab Games, to
take part in all inter-Arab sports events.
"I am committed to see that the decision is not ratified during
the meeting of the Arab sports federation scheduled for April in
Sharm al-Sheikh, Egypt," Sheikh Ahmad said.
Kuwait has systematically boycotted most Arab sporting events
in which Iraq have participated since Iraqi forces invaded and
occupied Kuwait for seven months before their expulsion in
February 1991 by a US-led international coalition.
Iraq admits taking prisoners during the retreat from Kuwait, but
claims it lost trace of them during Shiite unrest in 1991 in the
south of the country.
Baghdad claims that 1,000 of its citizens went missing in
Kuwait.
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Iraq, Syria call for meeting with Turkey for water sharing [
By BridgeNews Amman--Jan. 31--Iraq and Syria invited Turkey
on Wednesday for a tripartite meeting to reach an agreement for
sharing waters of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers, according to
the official Iraq News Agency. A joint statement issued after the
talks between Iraqi Irrigation Minister Mahmoud Diab Al-Ahmad
and his visiting Syrian counterpart Taha Al-Atrash said the two
had arrived at a "joint vision" for sharing waters of the two rivers
among the three littoral states.
"The two ministers also reached a transitional plan for bilateral
sharing of Tigris river water as a prelude for tripartite agreement
with Turkey to be based on rules of international law and treaties
already signed by the three countries," the statement said.
"They also underlined the importance of linking the apportioned
water with its quality and pledged to seek an implementation of
the Clean International River motto in constructive cooperation
with neighbor, Turkey," it added.
Both rivers originate in the mountains of eastern Turkey, with
only the Euphrates passing through Syria, and join in southern
Iraq before flowing into the Gulf.
Turkey has boycotted several meetings of a joint technical
committee and rejected charges from Baghdad and Damascus
that it was monopolizing the Euphrates and Tigris waters by
building more than 20 dams.
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Iraq and Russia vow to boost cooperation in oil sector
BAGHDAD, Jan 31 (AFP) - Iraq and Russia vowed Wednesday
to boost cooperation in the oil sector, the official INA news
agency reported at the end of three-day visit to Baghdad by
Russian Energy Minister Alexander Gavrin.
"The two sides agreed to boost cooperation in the oil sector
and implement the existing accords between the two countries,"
INA said.
Gavrin, who headed a 27-strong delegation that includes
representatives from the Russian oil companies Tranz Gaz and
Zarubezhneft, flew out of Baghdad Wednesday.
Gavrin held talks with Iraq's Oil Minister Amer Rashid, Industry
and Mining Minister Adnan Abdul Mejid and Agriculture Minister
Abdul Ilah Abdul Hamid on boosting industrial and agricultural
cooperation with Iraq.
In 1997, Lukoil and two other Russian companies,
Zarubezhneft and Mashinoimport, signed an accord with Iraq's
oil ministry on developing Iraq's West Qurna oil field.
However, Lukoil has been able to carry out only a limited
amount of work in Iraq so far, with the UN-imposed sanctions
crippling Iraq's oil industry.
"It is premature to speak (of this agreement). It will come up in
our talks and we will take stock at the end of the visit," Gavrin
said.
The West Qurna agreement was the first to be signed between
Iraq and an international oil firm since the United Nations
imposed sanctions on Iraq in 1990 following Iraq's invasion of
Kuwait.
The 23-year deal, worth 3.5 billion dollars, covers the
development of the 7.8 bllion barrels of proven reserves in the
Mishrif and Yamamah formations in the north of West Qurna.
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Baghdad radio says US, UK aircraft `bombed` Iraqi farmland
with seven missiles
Text of report by Iraqi radio on 31 January
The American, British and Zionist evil aggressors added
another crime to their heinous crimes against our civilian towns,
services establishments, and people's property in a bid to inflict
further damage on the jihad of our glorious 17-30 July Revolution
under the courageous leadership of President Leader
Saddam Husayn.
INA correspondent in the Governorate of Ninawa said that at
1500 on 24 January [date as heard], the ravens of the
aggressors bombed Al-Shallalat region in Ninawa with seven
missiles. The missiles exploded inside the Al-Shallalat area.
These ravens also bombed the farther end of the village of Tall
Yabis with another missile. INA correspondent said that the missiles of
aggression and malice exploded in the farmlands of Iraqi
citizens causing damage. No human losses were incurred from
this treacherous aggression.
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